Ruth went to work on Monday morning both hoping to see Mason and dreading the moment when she would. Because she knew she needed a little more time to process her thoughts and emotions, she went to work early so she’d already be inside when he arrived.
As she parked and got out of her car, she braced herself for the short walk to her back door in the frigid, windy morning. Low-drifting clouds of fog filled the street, so she ran all the way.
Inside, her kitchen was warm and welcoming. As she turned on the lights and ovens, the smell of sweet baked goods filled her senses and a feeling of coming home swept over her.
She wasn’t in the mood for cheerful Christmas music, so she turned on a playlist of classical music. Of course, it wasn’t too long before “Dance of the Sugarplum Fairy” came on and dragged her back into Christmas.
Which, since she was painting Santa Claus at that moment, wasn’t a bad thing, she supposed. Christmas wasn’t the problem after all.
With a sigh, she realized that she regretted canceling on Mason. He’d probably be done with her now after the way she’d acted and she wouldn’t blame him. It had just hurt so much to see someone so perfect and tiny in his arms while she stood there in her size sixteen jeans.
After some time alone, clarity had come swiftly and she’d known her jealousy had not been over the fact that Mason had hugged Brianna in a moment of excitement, but because Brianna was everything she wished she could be. No amount of telling herself that she was beautiful too or reminding herself of the times she’d known Mason was attracted to her made her feel better about that. But that wasn’t her biggest problem. Because of her body issues, she’d hurt Mason. And more than that, she’d broken her promise to him that she’d be happy for him if he won the bid.
As the tinkling, dancing notes of the music went on and on, she knew she had to come up with a way to fix this. Somehow, she had to show Mason the support he deserved. Maybe, with time, he’d even give her another chance.
As she carefully touched the tip of a very fine paintbrush to the cookie surface to paint Santa’s eyes blue, it reminded her of Mason’s eyes. Unlike Santa, Mason didn’t have a team of elves to help him get ready for the huge catering job. It was a strange way for her brain to finally come up with a good idea, but Ruth didn’t stop to examine where the thought had come from. She dropped the paintbrush onto into a cup of water and headed to the door before she could talk herself out of this.
Outside, she looked around and saw Mason’s car parked five yards or so down from her’s, so she knew he was at work. She didn’t knock because she hadn’t knocked in ages and waiting for him to answer might have sucked her courage right out of her. When she burst into Mason’s kitchen however, and saw him pause in the middle of his work, she wished she hadn’t been quite so impulsive.
He was bent over a big plastic mold with a piping bag of chocolate in his hands. He looked at her in surprise but only for a second before he put it down and came toward her. “Hey.”
He sounded surprised to see her, and that just about killed her. She hated that she’d hurt him, so before her nerves got the best of her, she said, “Mason, I’m sorry about the way I acted on Saturday. I came over because I wanted you to know that I’m—”
“No, don’t. I was an idiot.”
“No, I was a jealous brat. Despite my first emotional reaction, I am really happy for you.”
A slow, gentle smile pulled at his lips. “That means a lot, Ruth. Thanks.”
She nodded. “In fact, I officially volunteer my time and Brianna’s to help you get ready. I don’t know a lot about chocolate but I’m sure there are simple tasks that you can give me. Anyway, I’m all yours.”
It was only when his eyes lit with laughter that she realized how that sounded. “Oh yeah?”
“You know what I mean.”
“A guy can hope though, right?”
His teasing caught her off-guard. “Do you? Hope I’m yours?”
As his expression grew serious, he stepped close to her and took hold of her hands. “Lately it’s been the only thing I’ve hoped for.” He bent closer and murmured. “That whole thing with hugging Brianna? It was just that—a hug. She might as well be my little sister for all the interest I feel towards her. How could I even notice her when my I’m so focused on you?”
“Really?”
He nodded. “Why don’t you believe me?”
Ruth took a deep breath. “Because I’m so self-conscious about my size, I guess. And you’re so fit and athletic that…”
“Are you serious? I’ve told you before that you’re beautiful. And trust me—I’m way too attracted to every part of you. It’s distracting being this tempted all the time.” He cupped his hands around her face and raised it until she had to meet his eyes. “But that doesn’t matter nearly as much as how you make me feel. There’s something here, Ruth. Something that I don’t want to lose.”
Ruth agreed with him completely, but all she could do was put her arm around his waist and press her face against his chest. “I don’t either.”
She was happy to stay there, surrounded by his masculinity and reveling in his warmth and strength. But as much as she wanted to spend the rest of the day just like this, she finally pushed back. “We need to talk about the catering job and when you need me to come over. I can even shut down on the day of the ball if you need me to.”
Mason chuckled and smoothed his hands around her waist again. “You’re incredible, you know that? But I’ve got amazing news for you.”
Her eyebrows scrunched together. “What?”
“I talked to Sharon and she agreed that the best dessert table by far would be a mixed selection of my gourmet chocolates and Sugar Lips cookies. I’ve got the details in an email we can go read together. What do you think?”
But Ruth was too overwhelmed to formulate an answer. It was generous and kind and brilliant beyond words. As usual, Mason had gone after something and gotten it, but this time, he’d gotten something for her.
“I was thinking that your big cookie paintings would be an amazing backdrop on the tables with some of my chocolate sculptures as centerpieces. So what do you think? Will you do it?”
Ruth raised up on her tiptoes and grabbed his face to pull him down to her. She kissed his willing lips with enthusiasm, then hugged him again.
“I don’t know what to say.” Her voice was tight and choked with emotion. It seemed like such a cliché phrase, but she literally couldn’t put her thoughts into words.
“Hey, I don’t care if you talk at all if kissing is out of the box again.”
Ruth laughed and tipped her chin up for another kiss. “They’re out. And never going in again.”
Mason swooped on her then, angling his head to capture her mouth for a deep, almost victorious kiss that made her breathless and giddy. She completely forgot where she was until the sound of feminine laughter sounded nearby. Breaking away despite Mason’s reluctance to let go, she saw Brianna grinning at them from nearby.
“I wondered what was taking you so long,” Brianna said. “It’s time to open.”
“Oh my gosh,” Ruth said, stepping back. “I need to get back. Crystal isn’t coming in till later.”
“You’ll come back over though, right?” He grinned. “We’ve got some planning to do.”
She bit her lip. “I’ll be back, but if we’re going to pull this off, we don’t have much time to waste.”
“Pity,” Mason said, following her to the door. “So, want to come over for dinner tonight? I still have everything ready to cook for you.”
Ruth raised her eyebrows.
“It can be a planning meeting,” he said.
“Mmmhmm.” But Ruth was too happy, to hopeful, to tease him for long. “Sounds good. See you later then.”
“Have a great day, sugar lips.”